Yahoo! News: Iraq

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• Why Pentagon is cool to Cruz bid to let troops carry personal firearms on base
• ALLIANCES SHIFT IN THE SANDS OF THE MIDDLE EAST
• Campaign against Yemen rebels enters new phase, Saudi says
• Turkey calls for more help to stop foreign fighters
• Was ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi injured?
• Flee or return: Ramadi residents face a tough choice
• Iraqi troops retake some Ramadi districts from Islamic State
• 'America's worst nightmare' deserves death, trial hears
• Sexual dysfunction may accompany PTSD
• Obama Trounces Putin in Global Ratings of Leadership
• Germany, Iraq seek UN action to protect Iraqi cultural sites
• Global support urged to save Iraq's cultural heritage
• Coalition carries out 22 strikes against IS in Iraq
• Ethiopians struggle to come to terms with beheadings of compatriots in Libya
• US: No reason to think IS leader wounded
• Over 114,000 flee fighting in Iraq's Ramadi area: UN
• U.S., allies conduct 28 air strikes in Syria and Iraq: military
• Libya chaos spurs human smuggling, government spokesman says
• Libya condemns 'death smugglers' after migrant shipwreck
• Syrian Kurds see Islamic State threat to city in northeast
• How countries cope with migrants arriving by boat
• US sending carrier to Yemen coast as civilian casualties mount
• Out of the Ashes of Budget Politics – A Compromise?
• IS claims execution of 11 pro-government fighters in Iraq
• Old loyalties, religious cohesion may frustrate Islamic State in Libya
• In exile, Syrian Armenians feel echoes of genocide
• Alabama woman joins Islamic State in Syria: media
• Another Australian charged with terror-related offences
• Bomb explodes outside Spanish embassy in Libya: security source

Why Pentagon is cool to Cruz bid to let troops carry personal firearms on base Posted: 21 Apr 2015 03:49 PM PDT Sen. Ted Cruz (R) of Texas believes that troops should be able to carry their personal firearms with them on base – a point of view that puts him at odds with a number of top US military officials, including former commanders in America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Likewise, military brass has at times spoken out against the National Rifle Association, for example, when the organization launched a bid to keep commanders from talking to soldiers about the safety of keeping personal firearms in their homes. Asked about whether there is a need to change policy established by the George W. Bush administration in 1992, which prevents most troops from bringing personal firearms on base, General Odierno, who previously served as commander of US forces in Iraq, argued that military bases already provide considerable security for their soldiers.

ALLIANCES SHIFT IN THE SANDS OF THE MIDDLE EAST Posted: 21 Apr 2015 03:30 PM PDT But somehow, as our aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt steamed valiantly through the waters off Yemen to join other Yankee ships to intercept Iranian arms destined for the rebels there, the disturbing thought hit me that our allies today seem to have radically changed. In the southern reaches of the Middle East, as our ships sail toward the ancient port of Aden in Yemen, whose six- or seven-story "skyscrapers" built centuries ago are its most important gift to humanity, the Saudis have all but invaded to fight the Houthis. The Houthis are also fighting the local al-Qaida movement, which is also fighting the local Islamic State movement, both of which are fighting against the U.S. presence in the Middle East and the Saudis, whom the U.S. is supporting but prudently warning not to go too far. How could one forget the fact that there is a "legitimate" elected leader of the country, President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who was finally forced to flee the country last month.

Campaign against Yemen rebels enters new phase, Saudi says Posted: 21 Apr 2015 02:48 PM PDT NAJRAN, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia declared an end on Tuesday to its nearly month-long "Decisive Storm" air campaign against Houthi rebels in Yemen, and announced the start of a more limited military campaign aimed at preventing the rebels from operating.

Turkey calls for more help to stop foreign fighters Posted: 21 Apr 2015 02:01 PM PDT Turkey appealed for more help Tuesday in cracking down on foreign fighters flooding to join militant ranks in Iraq and Syria, revealing it had placed 12,800 people on a no-entry list. Turkey's shared borders with Syria, Iraq and Iran have made it a vital crossroads in US-led efforts to combat the threat of Islamic State group militants as well as to search for a solution to end the four-year Syrian war.

Was ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi injured? Posted: 21 Apr 2015 01:11 PM PDT On Tuesday, The Guardian reported that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State (ISIS) has been seriously wounded in an airstrike in Iraq. The US-led airstrike took place on March 18 and aimed to destroy a three-car convoy between the Umm al-Rous and al-Qaraan villages in Northern Iraq, close to the Syrian border. Brig. Gen. Saad Maan, a spokesman for the Iraqi interior ministry, agreed with Mr. Hashimi, telling BBC News Tuesday that Baghdadi had been seriously injured in a coalition air strike in March. Officials were unaware that Baghdadi was in one of the three cars.

Flee or return: Ramadi residents face a tough choice Posted: 21 Apr 2015 01:06 PM PDT ON THE BZEBIZ BRIDGE, Iraq (AP) — In the two weeks since militants from the Islamic State group overran central Ramadi, thousands of people have streamed out of the city, fleeing the brutal clashes between the extremists and Iraqi security forces.

Iraqi troops retake some Ramadi districts from Islamic State Posted: 21 Apr 2015 01:00 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi security forces have recaptured areas lost earlier to the Islamic State group in and around the western city of Ramadi in the volatile Anbar province, security officials said Tuesday.

'America's worst nightmare' deserves death, trial hears Posted: 21 Apr 2015 12:52 PM PDT Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is "America's worst nightmare" and deserves to die for perpetrating one of the bloodiest attacks on US soil since 9/11, his trial heard Tuesday. The court was shown a never before seen photograph of Tsarnaev, dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit flipping his middle finger at a surveillance camera in a cell before his first arraignment. "This is Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, unconcerned, unrepentant and unchanged," said Assistant US Attorney Nadine Pellegrini in her opening statement at the sentencing phase of his trial. The 21-year-old of part Chechen descent who moved to America with his family aged eight took US nationality a year before the deadly 2013 attacks, which killed three and wounded 264 more.

Sexual dysfunction may accompany PTSD Posted: 21 Apr 2015 12:17 PM PDT By Lisa Rapaport (Reuters Health) - Men and women with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may also experience sexual dysfunction and relationship difficulties, a new research review suggests. "Persons with PTSD often complain of sexual dysfunction and problems with intimacy more generally," and there's increasing evidence to support this association, said lead study author Rachel Yehuda in an email. About 6 percent of men and 13 percent of women will experience PTSD at some point in their life, Yehuda and colleagues note in the Journal of Sexual Medicine. Triggers for the condition include exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violence, as well as witnessing a loved one endure this kind of trauma.

Obama Trounces Putin in Global Ratings of Leadership Posted: 21 Apr 2015 12:14 PM PDT People worldwide have given U.S. political leadership the highest approval rating of the five major global powers – while Russia's leadership is in the cellar. President Obama's median approval rating was 45 percent, or roughly what it was a year earlier. Russian President Vladimir Putin earned a lowly 22 percent rating. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other EU leaders were close behind the U.S., at 41 percent and 39 percent respectively, while China's leadership was stuck at 29 percent.

Germany, Iraq seek UN action to protect Iraqi cultural sites Posted: 21 Apr 2015 12:06 PM PDT Germany and Iraq asked UN member-states on Tuesday to take action against the destruction by jihadist groups of Iraq's cultural sites, which they said was tantamount to a war crime. The two countries are to present a draft resolution to the General Assembly that calls on countries to prosecute perpetrators of cultural vandalism and prevent the trafficking of stolen artifacts. There has been growing international alarm over the fate of Iraq's cultural heritage after videos surfaced of Islamic State fighters destroying artefacts at the Mosul museum and in the ancient cities of Hatra and Nimrud. "Iraq is a cradle of our common civilization.

Global support urged to save Iraq's cultural heritage Posted: 21 Apr 2015 12:00 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Iraq and Germany urged all countries on Tuesday to support a U.N. resolution aimed at saving Iraq's ancient cultural heritage from further destruction by the Islamic State extremist group.

Coalition carries out 22 strikes against IS in Iraq Posted: 21 Apr 2015 11:22 AM PDT The US-led coalition said Tuesday its warplanes carried out 22 strikes in Iraq over 24 hours targeting the Islamic State jihadist group north and west of Baghdad. Nine of the strikes were in Anbar province west of Baghdad, where security forces are battling to expand their control beyond the pockets of territory they currently hold.

Ethiopians struggle to come to terms with beheadings of compatriots in Libya Posted: 21 Apr 2015 10:59 AM PDT By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Hundreds of grieving relatives gathered outside the homes of two Ethiopians who were among dozens shown being shot and beheaded in a video purportedly made by Islamic State militants in Libya, struggling to make sense of their loved ones' fate. Many opt to venture out and trek across the Sahara in a bid to reach Europe via Libya, where Islamic State militants have gained a toehold after seizing large parts of Syria and Iraq.

US: No reason to think IS leader wounded Posted: 21 Apr 2015 10:29 AM PDT US forces have no reason to think Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was wounded in an air strike against an Iraqi target last month, the Pentagon said Tuesday. British daily The Guardian had earlier reported that the militant, who styles himself caliph of the jihadists' territory in Iraq and Syria, had been "seriously wounded" in an allied raid. "We said that there was nothing to indicate that Baghdadi had been wounded or killed," Warren said. US and allied Western and Arab forces are engaged in an air campaign against Baghdadi's so-called Islamic State, a jihadist group that has seized cities in Syria and northern Iraq.

Over 114,000 flee fighting in Iraq's Ramadi area: UN Posted: 21 Apr 2015 10:11 AM PDT More than 114,000 people have fled fighting over the past two weeks in the Ramadi area of Iraq's Anbar province, the United Nations said Tuesday, expressing concern over the mounting problems faced by the displaced. The UN refugee agency said of the total number, about 8,000 remained in the western province of Anbar. "Some 54,000 have gone to Baghdad, 15,000 to Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and 2,100 people have fled to Babylon," UN refugee agency spokesman Adrian Edwards said. At least 2.7 million people have been displaced in Iraq since the beginning of 2014, including almost 400,000 from Anbar, according to the United Nations.

U.S., allies conduct 28 air strikes in Syria and Iraq: military Posted: 21 Apr 2015 09:59 AM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S.-led forces targeted Islamic State militants in Syria with six air strikes from Monday to Tuesday morning and conducted 22 strikes against the group in Iraq, the U.S. military said. The Syria strikes were concentrated near Al Hasakah and Kobani, the military said in a statement on Tuesday. They hit tactical units, a checkpoint, vehicles and fighting positions. In Iraq, coalition forces struck the area around Mosul, hitting a factory as they sought to weaken weapons production, the military said. ...

Libya chaos spurs human smuggling, government spokesman says Posted: 21 Apr 2015 07:46 AM PDT CAIRO (AP) — Libya's chaos has spurred human trafficking, a spokesman for the country's internationally recognized government said Tuesday, urging the world community to help his administration gain control of the rest of the country.

Libya condemns 'death smugglers' after migrant shipwreck Posted: 21 Apr 2015 07:31 AM PDT The foreign minister of Libya's internationally recognised government on Tuesday condemned "death smugglers" who organised the doomed voyage to Europe that left an estimated 800 dead in a shipwreck. We condemn the acts of these death smugglers," Mohamed al-Dayri told AFP in a telephone interview from Indonesia where he is attending an Asia-Africa summit. Leaders in Europe and Africa have highlighted the chaos in Libya as providing a safe haven for traffickers who lure migrants from all over Africa hoping to make the perilous boat journey to Europe. Libya has been riven by conflict since the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi, with rival governments and parliaments and armed groups now battling to control its cities and oil wealth.

Syrian Kurds see Islamic State threat to city in northeast Posted: 21 Apr 2015 06:28 AM PDT By Tom Perry BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State is preparing for a possible attack on a city in northeastern Syria near the border with Iraq where it remains a big threat despite recent setbacks, a Kurdish official told Reuters on Tuesday. Hasaka province in northeastern Syria is strategically important for all sides and abuts Islamic State-held territory in Iraq, where the group is back on the offensive after losing the city of Tikrit at the start of the month. The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia has recorded significant victories against Islamic State this year, driving it from the town of Kobani at the Turkish border and then taking two towns in Hasaka province with the help of a U.S.-led air campaign. Its targets include the provincial capital, Hasaka city, and the town of Tel Tamr, to the northwest.

How countries cope with migrants arriving by boat Posted: 21 Apr 2015 05:58 AM PDT Two recent shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea believed to have taken the lives of as many as 1,300 asylum seekers and migrants highlight the growing number of people fleeing persecution, war and economic difficulties in their homelands.

US sending carrier to Yemen coast as civilian casualties mount Posted: 21 Apr 2015 05:37 AM PDT A US aircraft carrier and guided-missile cruiser are steaming to the waters off Yemen to dissuade Iranian ships from delivering arms to Houthi rebels there, a move the White House has cast as primarily a show of force. The USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Normandy will join 10 other American warships off the coast of Yemen. The Pentagon said in a statement that the ships are to protect the region's vital shipping lanes. The deployment is also meant to reassure Saudi Arabia, an American ally that has carried out airstrikes against the rebels over the past month.

Out of the Ashes of Budget Politics – A Compromise? Posted: 21 Apr 2015 05:00 AM PDT Budget negotiators spent Monday afternoon talking past each other in the first round of a conference committee charged with melding the House and Senate-passed GOP balanced budget plans into one package. The GOP-controlled Congress is expected to agree on a budget plan in the coming weeks. At issue is whether Congress will stick with strict spending caps on domestic and defense spending mandated by the 2011 Budget Control Act. It could also breach the caps and boost spending by tens of billions of dollars in fiscal 2016, as President Obama and many Democrats favor.

IS claims execution of 11 pro-government fighters in Iraq Posted: 21 Apr 2015 04:40 AM PDT The Islamic State jihadist group claimed to have executed 11 pro-government fighters in Iraq, in a series of photographs shared online on Tuesday. Text accompanying the photographs said the men were killed in Salaheddin province, north of Baghdad, the scene of fierce fighting last month in which government forces recaptured its capital Tikrit. The Islamic State group led an offensive last June that overran large areas north and west of Baghdad, sweeping security forces aside. Baghdad turned to the Popular Mobilisation units -- which are dominated by Iranian-backed Shiite militias -- to bolster its flagging forces, and has since been able to regain significant ground from IS.

Old loyalties, religious cohesion may frustrate Islamic State in Libya Posted: 21 Apr 2015 04:23 AM PDT By Ulf Laessing CAIRO (Reuters) - Islamic State's executions of Christians show the group is exploiting Libya's lawlessness but tribal and political loyalties and the absence of a sectarian divide mean it is unlikely to grow as rapidly there as in Iraq or Syria. On Sunday, the militant group published a video purportedly showing the execution of 30 Ethiopian Christians in two locations in eastern and southern Libya, two months after it beheaded 21 Egyptian Copts there. The video suggests Islamic State, which controls much of Syria and Iraq, has managed to further expand in the North African country after establishing a limited presence in the eastern town of Derna as well as in western and central Libya. It is benefiting from chaos in oil-producing Libya, where two governments allied to armed factions are fighting each other on several fronts four years after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi.

In exile, Syrian Armenians feel echoes of genocide Posted: 21 Apr 2015 03:54 AM PDT For thousands of Syrian Armenian refugees in Lebanon, the slaughter and expulsion of their ancestors a century ago is less a historical event than an ongoing trauma. Though their community is just one of many caught up in Syria's brutal conflict, Syrian Armenians say their fate has been particularly painful because it echoes the tragedy often termed the Armenian genocide. Maggie Melkonian fights back tears as she describes fleeing to Lebanon from her home in the Sulamaniyeh district of Syria's Aleppo city more than two years ago. Melkonian is safe now, living in the Armenian district of Burj Hammoud with her daughter and son-in-law, and her grandchildren.

Alabama woman joins Islamic State in Syria: media Posted: 21 Apr 2015 01:06 AM PDT (Reuters) - A 20-year-old woman from a Birmingham, Alabama suburb has left the United States to join the Islamic State militant group in Syria, local broadcaster WIAT reported on Monday. The report came as U.S. authorities said they have charged six young Somali-American men from Minnesota with planning to join the fighters who have declared an Islamic Caliphate on land they have seized in Syria and neighboring Iraq. Hoda Muthana made contact with militants through social media and had been distancing herself from other Muslims in Hoover for more a year before leaving, said family spokesman Hassan Shibly according to WIAT. Shibly, who is also an attorney and chief executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations Florida, said the woman's family was devastated and has been working with authorities since she left, WIAT reported.

Another Australian charged with terror-related offences Posted: 20 Apr 2015 11:53 PM PDT Australian police on Tuesday charged a second man with terrorism-related offences, as Prime Minister Tony Abbott urged the public not to be deterred by fears of an alleged plot inspired by Islamic State. It follows police in Britain arresting a 14-year-old boy in connection with the purported plan to attack Anzac Day commemorations on April 25 -- when Australia honours its war dead. Of five men seized in Melbourne on Saturday, Sevdet Besim, 18, remains in custody charged with conspiring to commit a terrorist act. Another 18-year-old, Harun Causevic, was Tuesday charged with the same offence and remanded in custody, reportedly smiling from the dock at his weeping father.

Bomb explodes outside Spanish embassy in Libya: security source Posted: 20 Apr 2015 07:07 PM PDT A bomb exploded outside Spain's embassy in the Libyan capital on Monday night without causing injuries, a security source told AFP, an attack later claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group. "Islamic State extremists concealed an explosive device near an exterior wall of the Spanish embassy building in Tripoli, which caused some material damage to it and to neighbouring buildings," local official Issam Naas told AFP. Several accounts linked to the Libyan branch of IS claimed the attack on Twitter. The Islamic State, which has seized chunks of Syria and Iraq, has won the support of jihadist groups across Middle East and north Africa.

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